Mailman

by J. Robert Lennon

"'Masterpiece' would be an exaggeration, but only a small one."―Andrew Ervin, Washington Post Book World "A phantasmagoria of American paranoia and self-loathing in the person of a deranged but somehow good-hearted middle-aged mail carrier in steep decline, the book hums with a kind of chipper angst," writes Jonathan Lethem in the Los Angeles Times Book Review . Mailman tells the blackly comic story of Albert Lippincott. Albert is Nestor, New York's mailman extraordinaire―aggressively cheerful, obsessively efficient. But he also has a few things to hide: his habit of reading other people's mail, a nervous breakdown, and a sexually ambiguous entanglement with his sister. Now his supervisors are on to his letter-hoarding compulsion, and there's a throbbing pain under his right arm. Things are closing in on Albert, who will soon be forced to confront, once and for all, his life's failures. Funny and moving, driven by a wild, compulsive interior voice, Mailman is a unique creation, a deeply original American novel. Already optioned to the movies, this astonishing and kinetically charged tale was one of the most exuberantly praised novels of 2003.

Genres: Fiction, Literary Fiction, Novels, Collections, Roman, Comedy, Adult

492 pages, Paperback

First published January 1, 2003

About the author

J. Robert Lennon is the author of three story collections and ten novels, and is co-editor of CRITICAL HITS, an anthology of writing on video games. He lives in Ithaca, New York.

Reviews

[Stephen Curran · Rating 2 out of 5]

You've read this before. An American novel, 500-odd pages, small print, front-loaded with glowing reviews from respected publications, wry in tone, mildly depressed, literary but readable, describing the life of a disgruntled (usually white, usually male) individual or group of individuals in an attempt to say something about the culture at large. American Pastoral. The Corrections. The Art of Fielding. And what better figure through which to filter the American experience than a mailman?

Raymond Carver is mentioned on the back cover, but the comparison doesn't stand. When one of Raymond Carver's characters walks down a street he does just that, telling us only what's important. When J Robert Lennon's angry Mailman walks down the street, he tells us everything: the names of the shops, slogans on the shirts of passing Asian students, the diets of the chinless local women, the history of the local library, the significance of car bumper stickers and Mailman's opinions on them, the quality of the air now, the quality of the air later.

Frustratingly, the accumulation of detail builds to nothing: most of it could have been cut. After the halfway point I found myself skimming pages, safe in the knowledge that the majority of what I would read there would ultimately be irrelevant.

All this was pretty disappointing because I loved the author's more recent and far more restrained work 'Familiar'. And I will certainly pick up another of his titles soon. The sentences he writes are beautiful. But when it comes to yet another self-conscious stab at the Great American Novel, life's too short.

[Sayantoni Das · Rating 4 out of 5]

Okay, this was a lot to process. I feel like my head's heavy right now with all these thoughts that are juggling on their own. Mailman is comprehensive of every human flaw and confusion.

Reading Mailman has dug open old insecurities and also given the chance to actually bury them for good. It is a lot easier to handle flaws when we are looking at them in others, which in turn actually helps us deal with our own. The story is a robust blend of an urge to matter and a tremendous feud with insanity.

Honestly, I had a real tough time trying to keep at it because at times things were turning out to be real deep and at other I wondered what it might actually mean. But after this confusing bit of pages of ramblings we finally reach the part where things start to make more sense. Yep, it does happen but very slowly.

You guys, this book is definitely not for everyone but if you have the time and find literature interesting, this might interest you. Mailman is not an ordinary book, is heavily flawed, yet is able to reflect life just the way it is.

[Niall Stewart · Rating 4 out of 5]

This should be the sort of novel which automatically gets five stars because it contains everything I love and does it well, but it fell slightly short of the mark. Maybe it was the denouement and its slightly clunky efforts at crescendo. Maybe it was because the first half of the novel is so much stronger than the second. Maybe it was me. Still definitely worth reading, though.

[Thewife Ofbrian · Rating 4 out of 5]

One of the darkest, cynical funny and a bit shocking books I've ever read. There's a bit of mailman in all of us...
The ending was a horror show though, but the book was strong enough to not be ruined by it!

[James · Rating 5 out of 5]

Mailman is a lonely obsessive-compulsive rage-prone 57 year old letter carrier in Nestor NY (a thinly fictionalized Ithaca) in 2000 who reads his customers’ mail and has long reveries about the failures of his life, notably his failures with women. The action of the book unfolds over about a week, but much of the narration consists of Mailman’s detailed and often hilarious memories of his life, from his psychotic episode as an undergrad to his misadventures as a 50 year old Peace Corps volunteer in post-Soviet Kazakhstan to his tortured relationship to a sequence of horrible cats. Though brilliantly written and hilarious, the first two-thirds of the book had me wondering “what is the deeper point here?”, and it could have been a good 100 pages shorter. But the final two-thirds, when Mailman leaves Nestor one step ahead of the postal inspectors and returns to his aging parents home in Florida, is a touching and brilliant conclusion that redeems the languors of the first part of the book. An amazing if imperfect book.

[Vanessa · Rating 4 out of 5]

The gorgeously written, frenetic, wild, funny and absorbing story of Mailman, who has blundered through his life – mostly mis-understood and sometimes through his own skewed thinking.

The pace is so fast it makes for exhausting reading but at the same time it’s and exhilarating and rewarding read.

J Robert Lennox writes with compulsive energy, immediately drawing the reader into Mailman’s ordinary but secretive life. The minutia of Mailman’s thoughts, actions and deeds are compelling and I particularly enjoyed the Kazakhstan section and the story of how Mailman ended up there.

The ending was perturbing, sorrowful and perhaps a little out of place with rest of the style of the book but overall was tactfully and thoughtfully dealt with and I admit to shedding a little tear for Mailman.

[Brooke Ellis · Rating 5 out of 5]

Oh, Mailman. I read this such a long time ago and his sweet story of angst has always been with me.

[Alistair · Rating 4 out of 5]

So before I started writing this review, I quickly checked what my brother, who lent me the book, had thought as I couldn't remember his views for the life of me. I guess I'll start by saying unlike Andrew, I have taken a star off for the ending. No spoilers but there was a point 10 pages before the end where I knew I was disappointed which is, to break rules of repetition and stating the obvious, disappointing.
This type of writing - digressive, heavily invested in developing a strong character, wordy but without needing to study the book to get it - is right up my street and as its commonly found in modern American fiction is why I like that genre. As Mailman is well executed in that style its guaranteed 3 to 4 stars off the bat. The character was good. I liked that it was set in the late 90s for reasons I'm not sure of which.
So what does it need for 5 stars but lacks?
I do prefer a bit more story. It takes a while to develop a plot to speak of, but to be honest I dont really mind that if it's well written and I am interested in the character.
And the super long chapters make it hard to get into so I could see why people would stop before the end of the first one (about 60 pages) especially as it doesn't exactly roar into high octane action. Again, I can basically forgive that once I've worked out I've just got to put the book down midstream.
It's that stupid near-the-ending (...stick with it because I actually really liked the last paragraph) which cost the star.
Four stars is very positive remember. Glad I read it.

[Daniel Kassl · Rating 3 out of 5]

MAILMAN is a surprising triumph among a massive body of mediocre literature inspired by postmodernism and undertaken by white, male novelists with a knack for hearing themselves talk through their writing. Although I read this in 2024, it was very timely in 2003 and remains relevant. This protagonist is depressed, imperfect, and so completely overcome by crippling anxiety and self-doubt. Yet we read on, nodding our heads, which begs the question—how close to insanity, at any given time, is any of us?

Much of it is hyperbolically disturbing, and several abusive relationships make parts of the book very uncomfortable to read, but as life in America in the twenty-first century asymptotically approaches the utterly insane and inhumane, MAILMAN with this quality prompts genuine reflection on the classic questions regarding the meaning of life and what we can do with it. What are we all doing here? And what is it all for?

[Morven · Rating 2 out of 5]

why do all ‘weird’ books just end up being disgusting

[Paulien · Rating 4 out of 5]

I loved this book. I loved the writing style, the mix of hilarious moments and meaningful ones - but never getting sentimental. Mailman is pathetic, but he grew on me. These are some of my favourite quotes:

(p. 344)

"Instead he is busy enduring a wave of remorse and loneliness - he won't be around for the next local controversy. Or the next Friday radio scramble, either. Ah, hell. But then again, you can't drive through life looking at the rearview mirror, can you, otherwise you'll smack into a phone pole, or worse yet a pedestrian, or a pedestrian with a stroller, and you'll be a child murderer, all for the fleeting comfort of dwelling upon the past."

(p. 373)

"There was a small part of him that really did want to break up -- or rather, a constellation of small parts: patches of skin where she no longer touched him, the muscles that ached mornings after they stayed up late fighting, the part of his tongue where he could taste the hospital when he kissed her after work, an outpost in the subconscious where the hope of new love lurked."

(p. 471)

"I ask you to consider this, Albert: what is success, actually? What is a successful life? You are one person among many - a bacterium, say, in a petri dish."
"Great."
"Let's say that success, so to speak, is fame and admiration: in other words, one bacterium held in high regard by the rest of the bacteria. They are still just sitting in the dish on a laboratory counter, being bacteria. And so success, in these terms, is not very meaningful. A successful life, I think, should be self-defined, defined by happiness. Or, rather, satisfaction. Your life is successful if each day is fully lived. But that begs the question -"
"It begs a lot of questions."
"Yes, well, the one I'm thinking of is: What is it, then, to live fully? How fully can you live? Can you, say, climb a mountain and write a string quartet, and cure a disease, and have hot sex, all in one day? What can be expected of a single person anyway? You did what you were capable of doing, and then some. You lived as fully as it was possible for you to live. You loved badly, but you loved intensely. You left no emotional stone unturned."

(p. 479)

"I never meant to be a burden to anyone."
"No, nobody ever does."

(p. 483)

"Ah, good old Nestor," Sprain says. "I'll miss it."
"Me too," says Mailman, and it's true: but he misses Nestor the way he misses a thing that was never supposed to last, like a good meal, or a movie. Like his life, behind him now, as lovely with distance as a battlefield."

[Kim Lo · Rating 4 out of 5]

Mailman is a weird and bizarre concept of following the life is a USPS mailman who is located in Nestor, NY. He is nervous and worries about everything around him. He is divorce and there is a part of him that seems indecisive and maybe even a bit bitter about his life. We follow as he looks at his downfalls in life and all the failures that he goes through. He seems to go into denial about situations easily and he has slight anger issues. As we move back and forth from his past to his present, it seems like his life is simply going out of control.

This is a book full of details and descriptions of feelings, emotions, the surroundings, the people around Mailman. Sometimes, when it first started, it felt lengthy in parts and it felt like there was no point to any of it. As I read on, you feel more attached to the character of Mailman and even though he seems pathetic in many cases, or just that something is wrong with him, as he moves forward, I couldn't stop but to feel a bit sad for his character.

Its a heavy book and it did make me think a lot afterwards about all that I've read. However, it is a very unique idea, even though it is odd in many situations, it accomplishes in captivating the readers to want to know what happens to Mailman as his story progresses.

[Doris · Rating 4 out of 5]

Lennon is an amazing writer: from the very beginning this book barrels you along at an fast (exhaustive, frenzied) pace. It was hard to put down; I was up late many nights reading it. It's not so much the story that is gripping, it's his main character, Mailman, who is disturbed to the point of mental illness, yet hard not to love and care about. Lennon's writing is funny, at times brilliant, and always worthy. I'm still at the stage of wondering if this novel is a cohesive whole? Do all these sub-stories fit here? Does the explanation at the end bring everything together? I'm not saying it doesn't; this is just a novel I will continue to ponder for a long time, as Mailman ponders his life and Life.

[Rupert · Rating 4 out of 5]

This was a real pleasant surprise and inspiration. Picked it up cheap because I liked the cover and was engrossed in it immediately. Touches on some of the spirit of Confederacy of Dunces but goes much deeper and darker. Falls short of being a minor classic by going on perhaps a hundred pages too long. I checked the credits and saw that the author workshopped a lot of it and to me that's what the ending felt like, a too conscious juried wrap up to what was mainly an electric breathing experience of a character who had some core of decency but got lost, taking a part of you with him as he descended.

Just picked up the two new books by Lennon with much anticipation.

[M.R. Dowsing · Rating 5 out of 5]

Decided to revisit this after a gap of around 15 years, and it didn't disappoint. Albert Lippincott, aka Mailman, and a secret reader of the letters he delivers in small town America, is an unforgettable creation - a 'weirdo' and a 'loser' perhaps, but one for whom we feel almost entirely sympathetic (as well as frequently exasperated by). His disastrous relationships and misadventures culminate in an extremely ill-advised sojourn in Kazakhstan as a volunteer worker, which for me was the high point of the book. Lennon's eye for detail is amazing and the writing style really worked for me. At times it's very, very funny, but ultimately the book is surprisingly moving.

[MavM · Rating 5 out of 5]

Ah, what the heck. 5 stars.
This accelerated. It took a while to get under my skin, possibly because of unfair comparisons with The Long Take, which I recently finished and deals with similar themes albeit 50 years apart. For whatever reason it took a while before the long paragraphs and even longer chapters gripped hold. A memorable central character, a small city and an unfolding inevitable collapse. Great stuff.

(Despite the ending. I almost knocked a star off for the ending.)

[Andrew · Rating 4 out of 5]

One of the best books I've read in years. Deals with a lonely, isolated and somewhat pathological character, who is rendered with much depth and insight into human behavior. I will definitely look into more of Lennon's work after reading this.

[Casey · Rating 4 out of 5]

Great, funny book about a troubled funny little mailman.

[Alan · Rating 4 out of 5]

great little novel about a postman who steals post, and gets into all sorts of trouble. Great ending too I thought (although my friends have said wtf about the ending)...

[Mikey · Rating 5 out of 5]

I guffaw everytime I read this book. I swear it gets funnier everytime.

[Jeanne Martin · Rating 3 out of 5]

Première partie extraordinaire. Drôle originale et touchante.
Deuxième moitié très différente : un peu ennuyeuse, écoeurante.

[Christina · Rating 4 out of 5]

Great writing, interesting story and characters.

[Justin · Rating 3 out of 5]

Albert Lippincott, the book's titular mailman, is not a particularly likable guy. He reads people's mail, he twice twice abandons his cat, he has a barely hidden disdain for the people of his town, he hates himself and he wants to fuck his own sister. Yet despite all of this, author J. Robert Lennon manages to get the reader to cheer for Albert if not relate to him.

The best part of this book for me was Mailman's description of Nestor, NY, a transparently fictionalized Ithaca. Having just moved to Ithaca a few months ago, I got a kick out of Mailman's descriptions of the town and his people. I was hoping to learn more about the city's inhabitants through Mailman's interception of their mail but there was preciously little focus on anything other than Mailman's slow but steady mental decline.

By the end, after Mailman had fled Nestor, the book took on an overly repetitive tone. Mailman takes aspirin. Mailman takes an explosive shit. Mailman tries but fails to sleep. Mailman fantasizes about his own sister. Mailman recounts the many failures of his life. Continue and repeat.

All in all, I did enjoy Mailman but for me it didn't come anywhere near matching the breathless praise presented in the numerous review snippets plastered on the cover or across four full pages within the book.

[Terri Stokes · Rating 2 out of 5]

I struggled with this book from the start, for one I found the chapters a little too long, second, the writing is a little dry in some places but I can understand the way that the author wrote the book.
I admit that I mainly brought the book because of the cover and the way it looked as it was very different to any book I’ve seen before, so my opinion on the book was sorely based and that and hardly on the actual plot. I also found the way it ended kind of strange, I felt like it ended just so suddenly without any real closure, but it was kind of left open ended for the reader to believe what they want to believe and to decide how they want to end it I’m guessing, but it’s a book I will be passing on.

[Scott · Rating 3 out of 5]

This books reads like a cross between aging hipster potboiler and everything-is-metaphorical. The first half is more fun, and the narrator comes across as a likable enough crank, the kind who thinks he knows a bit more than you, has a more balanced outlook on life despite the shabbiness of his personal relations, or lack thereof. The second half, which has him leaving the nest, as it were, is less entertaining, more grueling -- a march from prime-of-life middle age to death's door. I see a bit too much of myself in the character, and I don't like it much. If there's a moment of clarity to be had, it's a deus ex machina at best, and Lucy pulling the football away at worst.

[Alfred · Rating 3 out of 5]

Beim Lesen dieses Romans tat ich mir etwas schwer, da ich die Hauptfigur zunehmend unangenehmer empfand. Anfangs war Albert noch eine etwas schrullige Persönlichkeit, doch nach und nach tauchten immer mehr Eigenartigkeiten auf, die er sich in seinem Gedankenstrudel nur schön geredet hatte. Die Realität und seine eigenen Interpretationen driften immer weiter auseinander - ist es ein Drogenrausch, ist es die Erkrankung? Wie bei einem Unfall der Zwang Hinsehenzumüssen, musste ich den Roman zu Ende lesen, um danach etwas ratlos zurück zu bleiben.

[Ashley]

I feel like this isn’t the kind of book you can give a neat little “star” rating to. It’s about a deranged, paranoid, lonely Mailman who lusts after his sister, opens stolen letters in an elaborate at-home set up, and has violent bowel movements every few pages. There is minimal plot, maximal voice and setting. And by the end I was relieved it was over and not mad I’d read it. Truly strange and almost pointless. But good? I’m not sure yet.

[Kat Walter · Rating 3 out of 5]

Torn between 3 and 4 stars…lowered rating because the book dragged in parts and was often repetitious. Crazy, brilliant , misunderstood mailman illegally reading mail and trying to find love and compassion. Good summation of book in this quote ‘Nothing sent is worth anything unless it gets where it’s going’.

[Patrick · Rating 4 out of 5]

Demented 50something mailman with women and cat troubles on a downward spiral in a barely disguised Ithaca, NY circa 2000. There's also a character that's clearly meant to be Carl Sagan. Read this one on a rainy Sunday, and it was entertaining though not as deep as its author probably hoped.

[Mark Fallon · Rating 2 out of 5]

The title, cover art and brief description on the dust jacket attracted me to this book. Apparently, this is supposed to be an "everyman" story. Well, only if everyman is in urgent need of good psychiatric care.